Government attorneys may be involved in compensation cartel, says Karnataka Deputy CM D K Shivakumar

Bengaluru: In an astonishing revelation, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar told the Assembly on Tuesday that government advocates may be colluding with “a big cartel” that seeks sky-high compensation rates for land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement.

Shivakumar, who is also the water resources minister, said this during a discussion on government expenditure on the Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam Ltd (KBJNL) and the Cauvery Neeravari Nigam Ltd (CNNL).

“I’m a little panicked,” Shivakumar said, before explaining the “major problem” he said he is facing in his department.

“Earlier, people gave up their lands for just Rs 2,000-3,000. Until recently, we have cases of people letting go of their lands for just Rs 10,000 per acre. But now, it looks like there’s a big cartel,” Shivakumar said.

Shivakumar cited various court orders granting compensation in Vijayapura, Bagalkot and Raichur. “In some 2,000 cases, the court has ordered compensation, which works out to an average Rs 74 lakh per acre. For submerged land, in 285 cases, courts have ordered compensation at an average Rs 1.26 crore per acre,” he said.

“For rehabilitation, in 367 cases, the compensation works out to an average Rs 5.18 crore per acre as per court orders,” Shivakumar exclaimed and said: “We don’t pay this much even in Bengaluru!”

The minister called for a “big investigation” into this. “I want to remove all government advocates dealing with these cases. We need to know who’s booked. I’ll order a comprehensive investigation. We’ll bring in a new team and file appeals before the High Court,” Shivakumar said.

Bijapur City BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, whose question led to the disclosure from Shivakumar, claimed that advocates create separate bank accounts to pocket 40-50 per cent of the compensation.

Yatnal’s grouse was with disparity in government spending on KBJNL and CNNL.

"The Krishna river irrigates 68 per cent of the state. The government is spending Rs 4,580 crore. But Cauvery, which accounts for only 12 per cent of the state’s irrigation, gets Rs 3,105 crore,” Yatnal said. “The allocation for Krishna should be 20 times more,” he demanded.